Snakes in the Grass: Who is Benefiting From Joey Gibson’s Rallies?

On Christmas Eve, 1985, David Lewis Rice murdered Annie, Charles, Colin, and Derek Goldmark at their home in Seattle because he mistakenly thought they were Jewish communists. He was an active member of a Christian Patriot group called the Duck Club, who promoted the anti-Semitic and anti-communist views he claimed as motivation for stabbing and beating a family to death on the eve of a major Christian holiday. The group maintained its innocence of any incitement to violence, but they never explained why he was involved with the group. What attracted a disturbed, violent individual like David Lewis Rice to a group that espoused anti-communist and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories under the guise of Christian values?

On May 26, 2017, Jeremy Christian killed two people and wounded a third who interceded when Christian was verbally assaulting two girls with Islamophobic and racist speech in Portland, Oregon. On April 29, he had appeared at a ‘March For Free Speech’ led by the Vancouver, Washington-based group called Patriot Prayer. After Christian made several Nazi salutes and shouted epithets, Patriot Prayer organizer Joey Gibson told Christian to leave, but he’s never been able to explain why Christian was there. What attracted him to Patriot Prayer, a group that espouses anti-communist and Islamophobic rhetoric under the guise of Christian values?

Joey Gibson has attempted to sell a candy-coated form of Christian Patriotism to the mainstream, but his attempts at inclusivity and ‘dialogue’ are clearly duplicitous. Now that the constant violence at his rallies has alienated his more mainstream fans, Patriot Prayer is moving even further to the right. Patriot Prayer continues to attract white nationalists, anti-Semites, homophobic street preachers, and self-described fascists to their events, while overtly propagating Islamophobia at events like ACT for America’s March Against Sharia Law. Joey Gibson has made little attempt to distance himself from his more extreme fans, and it’s clear that he’s in no hurry to tell them to leave now. Meanwhile, he continues to avoid the question: Why are they there?

The truth is that Patriot Prayer isn’t coming to Seattle on Sunday 8/13 to promote Christian values. Joey Gibson does not want dialogue. He wants confrontation. He wants to abuse and assault anyone who doesn’t believe his endless stream of lies. It’s time to show him and his friends how wrong they are.

He’s even adopted the same Feds-and-Reds conspiracy theory that has driven countless right-wing Sovereign Citizens and Christian Patriots to violence and murder. This week, he wants it to be a freedom rally again, and he’s talking about Jesus for the first time since he entered the regional consciousness as an ‘activist’ for a cause he can never quite define. His core values are no longer his own, and his sad but predictable path of self-brainwashing will only lead to more dangerous and unpredictable behavior. Meanwhile, his friends aren’t going anywhere. So we find ourselves asking, “Who is benefitting from Joey Gibson’s rallies?”

Bruce Cunningham Jr.

Nice nazi hat Bruce!

Bruce is an area neo-nazi based out of Shoreline, WA and is a perfect example of the type of dangerous individual that Joey Gibson is more than happy to create space for at his events. Bruce enjoys sharing nazi and other white nationalist imagery and is very open about it as evidenced by a cursory glance at his social media. Notice the Confederate flag life rune and US flag Sonnerad in addition to the multiple pictures of nazi planes and gear that he wears.

His Facebook profile is almost entirely white nationalist pictures and fake news stories.

Despite the above-ground nature of Cunningham’s neo-nazi ideology, Joey was happy to stand alongside him at the Patriot Prayer “Anti-Communism” event at Westlake Park on May Day. Bruce was thrilled to report in the comments of a video from that day that he was able to save a “Kekistan” flag. Given that the flag is a near-replica of the nazi flag, there is little surprise there.

Bragging about fighting on May Day to save a Kekistan flag.

His Youtube account includes an uploaded tribute to nazi Germany.

Cunningham Jr. on May Day after snatching back the Kekistan flag.

Considering how often Joey Gibson claims that his events are not white nationalist events, it is alarming that he continues to host events that this individual feels safe to attend. The fact that the amorphous ideology Gibson claims to be spreading to his events appeals so strongly to people like Cunningham is a threat to our community that cannot be ignored.

Bruce simply cannot wait for the event on A13!

Proud heathen, sure. But what kind of heathen?

Audina Wharton

Audina Wharton is another self-identifying neo-nazi from the area (originally from Selah, WA but may live in Tacoma now) who keeps showing up at Joey Gibson’s events. A cursory look at her Facebook profile shows that not only is she friends with Bruce Cunningham Jr., but that she also gladly identifies as a “beautiful Aryan woman”.

With friends like these…

Her Facebook profile, much like Cunningham Jr.’s, includes nazi imagery. One recent development with Audina is the fact that she appears to be engaged on some level with The Asatru Community. Within the pagan world, there has been an ongoing struggle between the disgustingly racist Asatru Folk Assembly and The Asatru Community (TAC). With TAC declaring themselves unaffiliated with the hideous ideologies of the Folk Assembly earlier this year, one has to wonder how they feel about somebody who claims affiliation with them also sharing neo-nazi pictures and memes.

Rose City Antifa researchers report that “she has close family members active in white nationalist prison gangs, and her Facebook friends list is a who’s who of well-known violent neo-Nazi skinheads (boneheads) from American Front, Hammerskins/PNW Wolfpack, Volksfront, and other groups like Cascade Legion, Wolves of Vinland, and more.”

Dan “Duerst the Wuerst”

Dan Duerst is not affiliated with any particular group as far as we know, but we included him in this report because he has been seen attending and engaging with a variety of Proud Boys and other alt-right individuals at actions in the area recently. He runs a YouTube page and is usually filming at actions, doing his best to obtain footage of antifascists and other counter protestors to edit and upload later for sharing on 4chan and other alt-right online hangouts. He should be considered a doxing threat and avoided if possible.

The Cascade Legion

The Cascade Legion is a relatively new formation, which coalesced earlier this year in response to a notion of a perceived victimhood at the hands of “Antifa terror” and “disgusting displays of anarchy.” Their membership varies from actual neo-nazis, such as Seattle’s own Charles Krafft, to internet meme kids, to Odinists and fascist heathens. The stated goal of the group is to provide defense to the right wing and assisting the police in engaging in political repression of their opposition. Several of their members have RSVP’d to Joey Gibson’s event on the 13th who we will cover next.

Neo-nazi Charles Krafft showing his affiliation with the Cascade Legion.

Jeffrey Hughes

Jeffrey Hughes is associated with the Cascade Legion, an Oathkeeper, a Mason, and a self-avowed fascist. Our friends at Rose City Antifa recently released an extensive report on him which can be found here. He frequently discusses his goal of uniting the police and militia organizations with the white nationalist movement, showing either his influence on the Cascade Legion or vice versa. Please take the time to read the entire Rose City report; it paints a crystal clear picture of what kind of person Hughes is and how he continues to benefit from the events Joey Gibson organizes.

Thorfin Odinson

Thorfin who lives in Longview, WA is a member of the Cascade Legion and the most obviously-Odinist member. Odinson also appears to be involved in the III%’er movement to some extent. A cursory look at his social media presence shows that he has been in attendance at several Joey Gibson events in Portland and Olympia and includes memes such as the one below which shows a heathen and crusader teaming up to fight Black Lives Matter, feminists, and a variety of leftists being controlled by a caricature of a Jewish person with a Sonnerad overhead.

How much shitty stuff can we fit on a meme? Let’s find out.

Thorfin and his militia buddies.

Garry Bergstrom

Garry Bergstrom from Kennewick, WA is buddies with Thorfin Odinson and another member of Cascade Legion. He has made appearances at other Joey Gibson events such as his anti-communist one here in Seattle on May Day. He shows up at actions as “Red Skull”, because nothing says bad-ass quite like wearing a shitty plastic Halloween mask.

David Fry

David Fry of Lakewood, WA is the president of the American Freedom Motorcycle Club which is affiliated with the “American Freedom Warriors” formation which is the loose coalition of various violent individuals and groups that has coalesced around Joey Gibson and his traveling circus. Fry has traveled as far as Berkeley to chase down and assault protestors in the streets.

Fry choking and beating a protester on the ground in Berkeley.

However, just a few days ago David took to his Facebook to denounce Gibson’s planned event in Portland due to his continued cooperation with fascists such as Identity Europa. While his actions in Berkeley speak for themselves, we genuinely hope and want to believe him when he says he has turned over a new leaf and is done with enabling these fascists to freely organize. That is, after all, our goal here; to prevent people from being duped into helping create a safe space and organizing opportunities for abject fascists.

Only time will tell if David is serious about this.

Aaron Laigaie

Aaron Laigaie is one of the co-founders of the “Mount Baker Proud Boys” out of Bellingham, WA and an Army veteran. The Proud Boys are a disturbingly misogynistic, Western Chauvinist group which chooses to hate based more along the lines of hyper-masculinity and an ahistorical notion of the West rather than the more common racial lines that hate groups draw and identify with. On June 10th, during the ACT for America anti-Muslim rally a group of Proud Boys repeated pursued and attacked the peaceful counter protest. In addition to this, Proud Boys just began posting their own propaganda for the first time here in Seattle.

Aaron shares a pic of some Proud Boys in Portland on 8/6 and promises more for 8/13.

Poster from the first wave of Proud Boy propaganda found in Seattle, August 8th.

The Proud Boys also are advocates for men refusing to masturbate. This ties in to a deep anxiety around the idea that “Western” countries are not having enough sex to keep up with other cultures (primarily Muslims). Don’t believe us? Hear it from Aaron himself:

Anthony Edward Bell

Anthony Edward Bell is another one of the Mount Baker Proud Boys. His obsession with Christian crusaders is a common theme amongst the Proud Boys and the broader alt-right and alt-lite and speaks to the same racial and cultural anxiety that drives their desire to not masturbate to increase their virility. They have been recruiting fairly steadily up there and their growth presents a threat not only to their own community but every community along the I5 corridor. Bell has been spotted as far as Portland at other Joey Gibson events.

Jake Farmer

Jake Farmer is another Proud Boy, this time out of Vancouver, WA.

Bentley posing with ‘Seff Calki’, a member of Cascade Legion, outside Milo’s tour bus at UW on J20

Kory C. Bentley

While Kory Bentley is not known to be officially affiliated with any particular crew, it is clear that he falls somewhere on the spectrum between alt-right and alt-lite and associates on some level with local Proud Boys and members of the Cascade Legion. His profile showcases some of the same, tried crusader memes that other Proud Boys share. He tried (and failed) to attend the Milo talk at UW choosing to instead then go online to lie about what had happened that night, telling his network that one of his friends had been shot. Given that the victim of that night was one of our own, we’d like to kindly tell Kory to fuck off.

Bentley with some friends at Finn’s on University Ave either before or after the Milo talk on J20.

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